Etymology
The scientific name of the crab-eating macaque is Macaca fascicularis. Macaca comes from the Portuguese word macaco, which was picked up from makaku, a Fiot (West African language) word (kaku means 'monkey' in Fiot). Fascicularis is Latin for 'a small band or stripe'. Sir Thomas Raffles, who gave the animal its scientific name in 1821, did not specify what he meant by the use of this word, although it is presumed it had something to do with his observation of the animal's color.
This animal has several common names. It is often referred to as the long-tailed macaque due, unsurprisingly, to its unusually long tail that is often longer than the body. The species is also commonly known as the crab-eating macaque because it is often seen foraging beaches for crabs. Another common name for M. fascicularis is the cynomolgus monkey, which literally means "dog-milker" monkey; this is the name most commonly used in laboratory settings. In Indonesia, M. fascicularis and other macaque species are known generically as kera, possibly because of the high-pitched alarm calls they give when in danger ("krra! krra!").
Read more about this topic: Crab-eating Macaque
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